Abstract: In the following pages, I will explore how Marjane Satrapi uses text and images as a medium for enacting her memoir Persepolis 1: The Story of a Childhood and Persepolis 2: The Story of a Return. Nations and homelands play an important part in identity formation. Through national symbols, individuals feel a sense of belonging to their nation; constructions formed by our environment are enacted on the physical body through national symbols. However, identity becomes problematic for those in the diaspora. Nevertheless, this scholarly exploration will illustrate how a shift of landscape signifies that when people move, identities and definitions of oneself and national and cultural identity change.
The symbol of the veil in Marjane Satrapi’s memoir fragments her body image by layering on false constructions of her identity. Because identity is linked to the body, Marjane can only enact agency over her identity when she removes the veil and reveals her body. Autobiographical writing allows Marjane to symbolically reveal and un-veil and begin the healing process. By revealing, Marjane can remove all the falseness from her body in order to gain a sense of truthfulness about her identity.